VANISH has secured a five-year funding commitment from the Victorian Government to support our work with people affected by adoption.
The $3.5m commitment over five years will enable us to provide vital support to adults affected by a past adoption that was arranged in Victoria, or where the natural mother was a Victorian resident at the time. VANISH can also assist individuals currently living in Victoria who are affected by a past adoption, regardless of where the adoption took place.
Between now and 30 June 2029, VANISH will work closely with the Adoption Information Service to provide:
- general post-adoption information and support services via telephone, email, our website and social media channels to more than 9000 people
- family search guidance and support to at least 610 people to enable them to complete their own search and establish their own relationship with family
- a direct family search and intermediary service to at least 400 people over five years.
The funds will help VANISH to build on our specialist direct search and support service while testing out new ways of providing support to people embarking on a search – including those wishing to lead their own search, or who would benefit from VANISH playing an intermediary role.
The funding commitment includes a boost of $530,000 to be received over the next two years. This additional funding will allow a continuation of VANISH’s counselling brokerage program enabling at least 124 people to access to one of almost 1000 fully funded counselling sessions provided by adoption-sensitive practitioners in the community.
The funding will also resource an expansion of VANISH’s peer support groups with more than 200 Victorians set to benefit from connecting with others impacted by past adoption practices. A focus for this work will be to explore different ways to deliver our group programs and to evaluate the benefits of peer to peer support, demonstrating how and why this approach can be so beneficial.